Avast Deleted My EXE Files: How to Get Them Back Quickly

Avast Deleted My EXE Files

“I was a bit panicked when Avast went berserkly deleting all my precious .exe files without asking for my permission. Seriously, it's frustrating! I'm running Avast Premium Cleanup on a Windows 10 PC, and now my download folder is completely wiped out. Has anyone else had this issue? Is there a way to recover Avast deleted .exe files? I need my stuff back, ASAP!”

Avast is a widely used cross-platform antivirus software to protect your system from viruses, malware, security threats, and other internet threats. However, you may encounter different problems, such as Avast deleted my EXE files.

You may feel frustrated and don’t know how to recover deleted .exe files. Take a deep breath and calm down! Then, continue to read this article and get 5 useful methods to retrieve them completely and quickly.

Why Avast Deleted My EXE Files?

Usually, Avast is quietly running in the background and scanning all new files on your system. When a potentially malicious file occurs, Avast will automatically put it in the Virus Chest for quarantine.

Although the false-positive rate of Avast is quite low, it will sometimes mistake legitimate files for malware and move them to Virus Chest. This is not unheard of. If the default configuration is changed, falsely flagged files may even be deleted immediately. So you could think Avast deleted your files without permission.

How to Recover Deleted Files by Avast Antivirus

If you are experiencing the Avast deleted my EXE files issue, you can then recover them with the following 5 methods. You can also attempt to check the Recycle Bin folder and restore deleted files from Recycle Bin first. Because deleted files will be moved to this folder unless they are very large.

Way 1: Retrieve .exe Files Deleted from Virus Chest

If the deleted files are not in the Recycle Bin folder, try to check Virus Chest and retrieve .exe files deleted by Avast antivirus.

Step 1. Right-click the Avast icon and select Virus Chest.

Step 2. Click the three horizontal dots of Avast deleted and select Restore.

Way 2: Recover .exe Files Deleted by Avast using Software

Your .exe files are not in the Avast Virus Chest? That’s okay, you still can rely on a professional data recovery software like MyRecover to recover files deleted by Avast completely and quickly.

Here are some key features of AnyRecover:

• Recover files lost in any scenario, such as virus infection, accidental deletion, formatting, corrupted disk, etc.
• Supports a wide range of file types, surpassing 200+ file formats. It can be .exe files, Word/Excel/PPT documents, WMV/MXF/MP4 videos, JPG/TIFF/GIF images, and any common file types.
• Compatible with all versions of Windows systems (32bit and 64bit), including Windows 7, 8, 10, 11, etc, and Windows Server.
• Complete recovery: With two advanced scanning methods, you can find as many files as possible and recover them completely without losing their quality or corruption.
• No technical expertise required, even for novices. 

Now please download and install this professional data recovery software. You can then follow the steps below to recover deleted files by Avast antivirus.

Step 1. On the main page of MyRecover, hover the mouse over the drive saved deleted files before, and click Scan.

Step 2. It will run Quick Scan and Deep Scan automatically and display all the deleted or lost files including the .exe file. 

To locate them quickly, expand Deleted Files, Recycle Bin, or Other Missing Files tab and find the folder containing .exe files for immediate recovery.

Step 3. Select the .exe files on a specific folder and click Recover x files. You will then be asked to select a location. Please select a new location instead of the original location to prevent potential data overwriting.

Notes:  

• The restore button will display the number of selected files and their full size. You can use it to determine the integrity of the recovered files.
• You can recover files deleted by Avast for free, up to 500MB in total. To recover all files, please upgrade to the advanced editions.
• In addition, you still can use this software to recover deleted WMV files, MXF, TIF, HEIF, X3F, 3FR, WAV, etc from internal or external hard disk, flash drive, or SD card.

Way 3: Restore Deleted .exe Files from Backup

You can also recover deleted .exe files from backup if there is an available copy. The virus-infected files are less likely to pass Avast and into your backups. Just try to check your backup copies in the following software.

OneDrive: one of the big three cloud storage. It will automatically back up your important folder and save them on local folders and online storage. If you are experiencing the Avast deleted my EXE file issue, try to check the local OneDrive folder or directly go to onedrive.com.

File History: built-in Windows file backup software. It will backup all the user folders, where, in Windows 10 or 11, you are able to add a specific folder for backup. To check file history backup, simply right-click the folder with deleted .exe files and select Previous Versions in the Properties window. Select a previous version of the folder and click Open. You can then find and recover deleted .exe files.

Backup and Restore: old backup software from Windows 7. Similarly, it will backup all the user folders. To check your backup, go to this software and click Restore my files. You can then search or browse for files and folders to restore and select a new location, click Start Restore.  

For detailed steps with screenshots, read this article: recover deleted files from Recycle Bin.

Way 4: Show Hidden .exe Files

In addition, your files may be hidden instead of deleted sometimes. Here we will show you two feasible ways to make them visible.

1. Using Folder Options

In File Explorer, right-click on the folder containing the .exe files, and select Properties. Then, navigate to the View tab and check Show hidden files, folders, and drives. Finally, click Apply and OK to save the changes.

2. Using Attrib Command

Step 1. Type cmd in the search and select Run as administrator.

Step 2. Type the following commands and press Enter after each line.

• /cd
• E: (Replace E: with the drive letter of your disk)
• dir/ah
• attrib *. -h -s /s /d

Now you may already recover files deleted by Avast. In case the file is a real virus or malware, it’s suggested to employ an antivirus to run a full scan. Here take Windows Defender as an example.

Step 1. Go to Windows Settings > Update & Security > Windows Security and select Virus & threat protection.

Step 2. Click the Scan options under Current Threats.

Step 3. Check the Full scan and click Scan now. It will start to scan and remove viruses currently on the disk. 

How to Prevent Avast from Deleting .EXE Files

To avoid Avast mistaking .exe files for malware and deleting them, you can whitelist your .exe file. However, this operation may expose your system to potential risks. Be careful and follow these steps to block folders and files from Avast:

Step 1. Disable real-time protection temporarily. Install the .exe file.

Step 2. Launch Avast. Go to Settings and select General.

Step 3. Expand the Exclusions item. Click File Paths and then Browse.

Step 4. Go to the location where the .exe file is saved. Choose the entire folder or specific .exe file and double-check your changes.

Step 5. Finally, re-enable real-time protection.

In addition, if you think this file is very important, you can also backup files to external hard drive or other devices with reliable Windows backup software. We recommend you use AOMEI Backupper Standard.

Conclusion

You can easily fix the Avast deleted my EXE files with multiple methods above. It’s always recommended to check the Recycle Bin folder first. All the deleted files will go to this folder unless they are very large.

In addition, the most effective method is to use professional data recovery software like MyRecover to get back your .exe files, regardless of data loss scenarios and where you lost them. Note every attempt will reduce the success rate of data recovery.